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Aniplex of America to Release NEKOMONOGATARI BLACK and MONOGATARI SERIES SECOND SEASON

Fans of the MONOGATARI SERIES were presented with some very sweet news this Valentine’s Day weekend. Aniplex of America Inc. has announced their release plans for both NEKOMONOGATARI ＜BLACK＞ and the MONOGATARI SERIES SECOND SEASON (＜物語＞シリーズ セカンドシーズン, ＜Monogatari＞ Shiriizu Sekandoshiizun, 2013) at their industry panel held at Katsucon in National Harbor, Maryland. Aniplex of America Inc. is scheduled to release both NEKOMONOGATARI ＜BLACK＞ and NEKOMONOGATARI ＜WHITE＞, the first arc in the MONOGATARI SERIES SECOND SEASON, in Limited Edition Blu-ray Sets on April 22nd, 2014 and June 24th, 2014 respectively.

The MONOGATARI SERIES is the anime adaptation of a popular light-novel series by author Nisioisin produced by the critically acclaimed studio SHAFT (Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Nisekoi) and directed by the equally notable Director Akiyuki Shimbou. NEKOMONOGATARI ＜BLACK＞ is the prequel to the story featured in BAKEMONOGATARI (化物語, 2009), the first season of the series and another highly popular Aniplex title. NEKOMONOGATARI ＜WHITE＞ is the first of several stories in the MONOGATARI SERIES SECOND SEASON, which features the events of BAKEMONOGATARI through the eyes of the women the main protagonist Koyomi Araragi helped. The story of MONOGATARI SERIES SECOND SEASON is not simply a sequel to BAKEMONOGATARI but the story continues to evolve as it delves deeper into the details of each tale only this time told through the heroines’ perspectives.

Pre-orders for both of these SKUs will be available through Rightstuf.com and Aniplex’s official retailers starting on Tuesday February 18th. The details of the release for the other MONOGATARI SERIES SECOND SEASON episodes will be announced at a later date.

Both Limited Edition Blu-ray Sets will be distributed in limited quantities and will be sold while supplies last.

On his way to the bookstore, Koyomi Araragi encounters Tsubasa Hanekawa whose face is covered with a bandage. The incident allows Koyomi to learn what has been happening in the Hanekawa household, but Tsubasa begs him not to tell anyone about it, saying she’ll do anything to keep him quiet.

Without revealing her family’s circumstances, Koyomi tells of the day’s incident — he and Tsubasa buried a “cat” that had been hit by a car — to Meme Oshino. Meme tells Koyomi that he must immediately go to confirm Hanekawa’s safety. He heads to her house, only to find… So begins the nightmarish nine days of Golden Week…

At the end of summer vacation, upon the morning of the opening ceremony for the second semester, Tsubasa Hanekawa encounters an enormous tiger on the way to school.

“White. So white… So purely, blandly white…”

Proclaiming Tsubasa as such, the white-furred tiger strides past her and vanishes. After this happens, Tsubasa’s house is destroyed in a fire. But this is just the beginning of a series of unfortunate incidents for her and the people around her. Koyomi Araragi decides to save her with help from the former “Kiss-Shot,” a legendary vampire.

About Aniplex of America Inc.

Aniplex of America Inc. (Santa Monica, California) is a subsidiary of Aniplex Inc. (headquartered in Tokyo, Japan), a group of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc. and leading provider of anime content and music production and distribution in Japan. Aniplex of America has launched fan-favorite DVD and Blu-Ray releases such as BAKEMONOGATARI, DURARARA!!, PUELLA MAGI MADOKA MAGICA, THE GARDEN OF SINNERS and BLUE EXORCIST. The company’s ever-growing line-up of shows includes our most recent titles, SWORD ART ONLINE, MAGI, BLAST OF TEMPEST, OREHURA and VIVIDRED OPERATION.

About Right Stuf

Currently celebrating its 27th year in business, Right Stuf, Inc. was one of the first players in the U.S. Japanese Animation (“anime”) industry, as both an anime producer/distributor and a retailer. Right Stuf works to promote knowledge of its own products, as well as the anime and manga industry, through its online storefront at RightStuf.com and a variety of media including podcasts and special publications.

For more information on MONOGATARI SERIES SECOND SEASON and NEKOMONOGATARI BLACK please see the previous coverage here on SciFi Japan: